The increasing growth of personal computers and networks allows people to utilize the networks to search for and provide information. Currently, network demands are more and more. Network-related enterprises need large numbers of computers and a lot of network equipment to satisfy user requests. For example, internet service providers and virtual host providers need to buy large numbers of servers to rent to users. The management and trouble shooting of these servers are becoming an important link. A larger server provider has usually thousands of servers. Conventionally, control of each of these servers requires a monitor, a keyboard and a mouse. That is, each server needs at least a monitor, a keyboard and a mouse. However, in actual use, each of these servers spends little time on the monitor, keyboard and mouse. Since the servers do not need to be controlled most of the time, they do not always need peripheral devices. Control of every server with a set of these peripheral devices would accordingly incur high operation costs and is not necessary. In addition, using so many peripheral devices also wastes space. In resolution of these problems, a KVM (Keyboard, Video monitor and Mouse) switch with a monitor, a keyboard and a mouse controls a plurality of server computers. A KVM switch can connect to a plurality of computers and switch between these computers. Therefore, the quantity of the peripheral devices can be reduced.
A blade server system is a mainstream computer server, and the blade server system further saves space. The blade server combines the hardware of the computer server, such as a processor, a memory and a network connection, into one blade server. The blade server has a higher calculation capacity and higher stability, and, in particular, occupies less space than a conventional computer server. The blade server is inserted on a chassis therein. The user can decide how many blade servers are needed and insert the same in the chassis. After the blade servers are inserted in the chassis, the server works immediately. Therefore, a plurality of blade servers can work in only one casing similar in size to one conventional server.
The blade server system needs peripheral devices, such as a keyboard, a video monitor and a mouse, to control the blade servers therein. Accordingly, an internal or an external KVM switch is used for a blade server system to reduce the quantity of the peripheral devices. The internal KVM switch may reduce the quantity of required cables, compared with an external KVM switch. But the internal KVM switch, such as a KVM switch blade, occupies a blade server socket on the chassis. Further, if the KVM switch blade is damaged, control of the whole blade server system may be lost.